


Enchanted

by PerrythePlatypusGirl



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Modern Fantasy AU, Rivals to Lovers, Sort Of, please read the author's notes or you'll be totally lost lol, they're not really rivals callum's just insecure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-03
Updated: 2019-12-03
Packaged: 2021-02-18 13:20:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,277
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21661447
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PerrythePlatypusGirl/pseuds/PerrythePlatypusGirl
Summary: In most places, teenagers often dreamed of becoming famous singers or actors. In Katolis, they dreamed of being magicians.
Relationships: Callum/Claudia (The Dragon Prince)
Comments: 8
Kudos: 15





	Enchanted

**Author's Note:**

> Some notes to read to avoid confusion:
> 
> 1- Yes, this is a modern AU, so don't surprised to see mentions of phones/internet/etc lol.
> 
> 2- In this universe, magic is used for performance rather than fighting. The Primal magic system is mostly the same. Dark Magic is replaced with "artificial magic," and it's done with machines. It's not evil, it's just fake.
> 
> 3- Canon has no power here.
> 
> Enjoy!

In most places, teenagers often dreamed of becoming famous singers or actors. In Katolis, they dreamed of being magicians.

Magic was an integral part of Katolis' culture. In the olden days, only those born with an innate connection to magic were able to use it. They would connect to an element of nature and act as its conductor. Primal magic. It was respected and rare.

Nowadays, no one cared about that. It was the modern age. People could use magic with machines now! Artificial magic, as it was called, drew a lot of crowds despite everyone knowing it wasn't an innate skill of the magician. Sure, it still took a lot of practice to master, apparently, or else everyone would do it, but still. _Anyone_ could do it!

And Callum was real pissed about that.

A whole life of connecting with the primal instinct that permeated his very soul, mastering his wind magic, and all it amounted to was some meager performances and some birthday party tricks. Meanwhile, some _fake_ named _Claudia_ who wasn't even _from_ here got all the glitz and glamour and attention.

He'd seen her on TV. She had no idea who he was, but he still considered her somewhat of a rival. Or at the very least, someone to beat. If he could pull off those same crazy stunts of hers with his _real_ magic, he would become just as famous as her, but even better.

Claudia was performing in Katolis tonight. Naturally, Callum bought a ticket to her show.

So he could learn her secrets, of course. To beat her at her own game.

"Alright, so let me get this straight." Rayla, an old friend of Callum's who also served as his voice of common sense, rested a hand on her forehead as she attempted to understand what she'd been told. "Your plan to bring down this famous magician and become more successful than her is to....support her monetarily by buying a ticket to her show?"

"I—Okay, I know it sounds contradictory," Callum replied. "But it's a one-time thing, and it has a _point!_ You know what they say about keeping your enemies closer. This is a good chance to observe her in person and figure out her secrets!"

"Uh-huh." Rayla raises an eyebrow, unconvinced.

"I think it's a good idea," piped up Ezran, Callum's kid brother. He was sitting on one of those spinning chairs, kicking his legs as he listened to the conversation. "Can I come with you, Callum? I can help you observe. Mom says I have good eyes."

Callum smiled at him. "Aww, thanks, bud. But I think giving Claudia money for _one_ ticket is enough. I'm gonna have to do this one alone."

Ezran looked down, disappointed, and Callum immediately felt like a rotten piece of garbage. "Oh. Okay," said Ezran. "I just thought, since you're gonna be the only non-Claudia fan there, you'd be embarrassed about being there, so I wanted to come along with you...."

Ah, dammit. "A-actually, you know what? A few extra dollars isn't that much. Of course you can come, Ez."

Rayla rolled her eyes.

"I guess I'll just go online and get that ticket before they're sold out," Callum continued, turning around to leave. "See you later, Rayla."

As he left, Callum heard Ezran whisper (loudly) to Rayla on the way out.

"Actually, I'm going because I'm worried about Callum," he said. "If he sees how cool Claudia's tricks are, he might get sad, and I'll have to be his shoulder to cry on."

"Aww," Rayla cooed. "That's really nice of you, Ezran."

Callum wasn't sure whether to be touched or insulted. Ezran was a good kid, and he only wanted to help, but _really?_ "You guys know I can hear everything you're saying, right?"

And that was how, later that day, the two brothers found themselves sitting in a packed auditorium, waiting for the big red curtain to open.

They were in their seats, Callum with his pen and notepad, ready to record every detail, and Ezran, sticking close and looking around in awe at all the people and decorations.

"Callum," Ezran called over the noise of the crowd. "I just saw some guys in Claudia cosplay. Look at all that purple hair dye!"

"Uh-huh."

"Hey, do you think she'll do that thing where she sets the stage on fire and walks through it? I saw that one on TV once!"

"Maybe. But remember, Ezran, we're on a mission, okay?" He clapped a hand on Ezran's shoulder and looked him seriously in the eye. "I'm gonna need those eagle eyes of yours. Stay focused."

"Right," Ezran nodded enthusiastically. He made a pair of binoculars with his hands, and looked through them. "Mission mode: on."

At that moment, the auditorium grew dark, and a voice boomed through the speakers. Callum held his notepad ready.

_"Ladies, gentlemen, and everyone in between, welcome to the performance of a lifetime! Prepare to have your minds blown to tiny little bits, as you witness the awesome, the dazzling, the absolutely magical...Claaaaudiaaaa!"_

The big red curtain slowly rose, and a cloud of purple gas rolled out from underneath. Amidst the flashy effects and lighting, a teenage girl barely older than Callum strode out confidently, raising her arms in the air. "Helloooo, Katolis!"

Claudia was met with rambunctious cheers. Callum was already sketching furiously.

"Callum!" Ezran cried, hand-binoculars still on his face. "I've observed something! Claudia's really pretty!"

"Uh—that's not the point, Ez!"

The applause died down, and Claudia continued talking and strolling onstage. "It is such an honor to be here tonight, in the birthplace of modern magic. I have travelled far and wide—."

Before their eyes, Claudia took a step and immediately fell _through_ the floor—

"Whoa, what??"

—only to appear in the back of the room.

"—to be here with you today, and hopefully to dazzle Katolis like it once inspired me."

The people clapped again. Ezran had a huge smile on his face. Callum whipped his head back and forth from Claudia to the stage, deciphering the mechanism behind her teleporting trick.

Claudia blew some flower petals out of her hand to the audience before "teleporting" back to the stage. "And now, it's time for the show to begin!"

Over the next two hours, Callum's arm started to ache as he carefully observed and recorded the fast-paced tricks that unfolded onstage. Her work was impressive, for sure, but more than once he was able to spot the machine, the mirror, or whatever it was she was using. Everyone had already accepted that artificial magic was what she was using and just enjoyed the spectacle—but if Callum could recreate this with his primal magic? That would _totally_ knock their socks off.

Ezran, meanwhile, was having the time of his life. "Callum, look, look! She's gonna do the flying trick! Callum!"

"I'm looking!" Callum shouted back. "Come on, Ezran, that's just a basic wind trick, I can do that just by _breathing."_

"Yeah, but it looks so cool!"

"Sure, but you can help me make it look cooler, right? Can you see how she's doing it?"

"Nope!"

Callum sighed and let him off the hook. The kid could have fun. But he was here for _war._

Soon, however, it was over. Claudia climbed gracefully down the pile of animated furniture she'd created, and took a deep bow. "Thank you, Katolis!"

As the crowd cheered, Callum flopped back in his seat and breathed a sigh of relief. He flipped through the countless sketches he's made, messy for now, but ready to be deciphered later. It was definitely better than what he could have gathered from TV. He was satisfied for now.

The curtain closed, and just like that, the show was over.

—-

Minutes after the show, Claudia sat backstage, rubbing her sore shoulder. Artificial magic tended to be physically exhausting, but it was worth it. When she was performing, she could forget all about the machines and feel like she was doing _real_ magic.

Hearing a noise, Claudia looked up to see her father/manager Viren walking over, followed by her older brother/bodyguard, Soren.

Claudia grinned. "Hey. Pretty good show tonight, huh?"

"Yes, excellent work, Claudia," Viren replied, barely looking up from the tablet in his hands. "Tickets sold out tonight, and we're already well underway to selling out tomorrow night's show."

"Great!" Claudia said. "Can't wait." She smiled, but kept painfully rubbing her sore muscles.

Soren, leaning on the opposite wall, took notice. "Uh, is your shoulder okay?"

"Huh? Oh yeah, fine," said Claudia. "It's just—the machines, you know. Strapping them on the whole show makes me kinda sore." She looked to her father. "Dad, didn't you say that you were working on making them lighter and easier to wear?"

Viren looked up for a moment to nod. "Yes, of course. Progress is being made, just hang in there for a few more weeks."

Claudia nodded. "Ok, good. Man, I can't wait until we get to the point where they're barely even noticeable anymore. Maybe then I'll know what it feels like to be one of those Primal magicians." 

"Still going on about that?" Soren asked.

"Sorry, it's just neat, okay?" Claudia leaned on her hands and smiled dreamily. "I mean, imagine not having to strap yourself to a machine to do magic. They can just _do_ it, like....breathing! It's... _breath-magic."_

Viren looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Yes. Breath-magic." He turned back to his tablet. "Not that it matters these days. There's no difference between you and a Primal magician, so long as people are willing to overlook it."

"And also, we're rich and famous," Soren piped up. "So what's the point of being jealous?"

"I-I'm not..." Claudia bit her lip. "I'm not jealous, I just wish I could...I don't know, meet one? This is Katolis, after all, if any of them still exist, they'd be _here."_

Soren looked like he wanted to retort, but Viren held up a hand and waved the topic away. "Well, maybe you'll meet one at the meet-and-greet we need to be getting to."

Soren scoffed. "Yeah, like a Primal magician would ever come here."

Viren ignored him. "Come on, Claudia," he said as Claudia stood up to follow. "And remember: stick to the script."

—-

Once the meet-and-greet was over, Claudia finally got to have some time to herself. She loved interacting with her fans, but it could get tiring, especially after an already-exhausting show. Now she had some peace and quiet at last.

Maybe she could go out. Don a disguise so nobody would recognize her, and wander around this historical city a bit. That sounded exciting.

Once she was set loose, Claudia put on an old hoodie and pulled the hood over her head. She put on some dark sunglasses, and prepared to head outside.

The auditorium where she'd performed was eerily dark and quiet right now. Not that Claudia minded, she actually found big, dark empty rooms rather relaxing. She could take her time wandering through here. Claudia clasped her hands behind her back as she started down one of the aisles. The mechanism from her show was still laying around, waiting for the next performance, looking bare without all the special effects around them.

Claudia took a breath and she headed toward the door...when she suddenly heard voices.

Instinctively, Claudia ducked behind one of the chairs. There wasn't supposed to be any gusts left—maybe they were stage workers? Claudia slowly peeked up behind the chairs to see two boys looking up at some of the machines in the back of the room. One looked around her age, while the other appeared to be in elementary school. Okay, those definitely weren't stage workers. What were they doing?

"Come on, Callum," the younger boy whispered. "Haven't you gotten enough sketches already? I want to go home."

The older boy was studying the mechanism intently, holding a sketchpad in his hands. "Just a few more minutes, Ezran," he replied. "I think I've almost figured this one out..."

Ezran rolled his eyes while Callum kept circling around the object, looking for something. Claudia squinted at them. Should she yell at them? Should she call Soren? These kids were definitely breaking some rules.

"Wait, wait, I think I need to get a look at the top of this," Callum declared, "Ez, stand back will you?"

Ezran stepped back, and Callum shook himself out for a moment as if warming up....then, he drew in a breath and somehow _blew_ himself off the ground.

Claudia's jaw dropped.

Callum remained hovering in the air for several seconds, the air beneath him completely under his control as he studied the machine and scribbled furiously. "Oh! I think I get it!" He cried.

"Callum, can you please get down?" Ezran whined.

Callum listened to him, touching back down on the floor, and they both continued on as if nothing special had happened. He showed Ezran his sketchpad excitedly. "I think I figured out how the trick works."

Meanwhile, Claudia's brain was broken. He wasn't strapped to anything! He'd just done that, completely naturally, with nothing but his body—with his _breath!_ There was no way!

Shakily, Claudia stood up, drawing in a breath to call out to them—

"Hey!" A new voice suddenly shouted, making everyone jump. Claudia froze up in her spot as she saw Soren stomping his way over to the boys.

Callum quickly pulled Ezran close as both wide-eyed boys backed away from Soren. When he got close enough, Soren stopped before them and crossed his arms, scowling at them.

"What are you kids doing here??" He demanded. "No guests are allowed in the building at this time."

"We—uh we..." Callum stammered.

"We wanted to see Claudia!" blurted Ezran.

"Well, sorry to break it to you, but meet-and-greets ended an hour ago. You two should be long gone. Beat it before kick your asses out of here myself."

"Ah, no need, sir!" Callum replied quickly. "We were just on our way out! Let's go, Ezran!"

With that, both boys scrambled out of the building, the giant doors slamming behind them. Soren nodded, satisfied as he watched them leave, then turned to go back to where he came from. None of them seemed to notice that Claudia had been there.

She remained frozen in place for another few seconds, replaying everything she'd just seen in her head. That boy had _actual_ magic just now. He'd used it like it was nothing at all!

_Callum._ Claudia absolutely _had_ to meet him.

—-

After a week of him scouring over his sketches of Claudia's machines, Callum was finally dragged away by Rayla to go do something productive.

"If you want people to notice your magic," she'd told him, "Quit trying to copy the artificial girl's tricks. Get out there and _do_ something with your stupid wind spells."

Callum really didn't know what he'd do without Rayla as his...manager? He hadn't actually hired her, but she acted like a manager sometimes—anyway, now Callum was at a birthday party.

One of Ezran's classmates, a girl named Ellis, had invited him to her party at a local arcade. As a bonus, Ezran was allowed to bring Callum along to entertain the kids for some extra cash. It wasn't much, but every star had to start somewhere, right?

"Thanks for doing this, Callum," Ellis' father was telling him. "So, are you going to need some time to set up, or...?"

"No sir, no setup necessary," Callum replied proudly. "The only materials I need are the air around us, and these two hands." He waved his hands in front of him, grinning widely.

Ellis' dad blinked. "Oh. I see, you're a...Primal mage, right?"

"That's right," Callum said. "I admit, my work may not be as flashy as what you may have seen on TV, but it's 100% natural—and I guarantee, it's gonna _blow_ your mind."

Callum let loose a small puff of air to emphasize his wind pun. It blew the man's hat off his head. He did not laugh.

"...alright," Callum laughed. "Let's uh, gather the kids, shall we?"

While the birthday party was in full swing, a pair of teenaged siblings entered the arcade, one of them bored out of his mind while his sister giddily looked around.

"Wow, look at this, Soren!" gasped Claudia, once again in disguise. "I have been in an arcade in ages!"

"Claudia," Soren groaned. "Why do you have to go on a tour of every city we stop at? Can't we just go home? I'm bored."

Claudia gave him an annoyed glare, taking her shades off for a moment. "Well, sorry, Soren, but I don't exactly get much time outside of the trailer and our house. Maybe I just want to be normal sometimes, okay?"

Soren rolled his eyes, just as the PA system in the arcade pinged to life.

_"Alright, everyone who's here for Ellis' birthday party, gather in front of the main stage for the magic show! We're starting in just five minutes. Again, Ellis' birthday party, to the main stage."_

Claudia blinked, and looked toward the main stage where the kids were starting to gather. "Ooh. What's going on there?"

"Uh, Ellis' birthday party, didn't you hear?"

"No, I mean the magic show! Let's see what they do!" Claudia hurried forward, followed by her grumbling brother.

"Yeah, it's not like you're a famous magician or anything..."

Once she was close enough for a view, Claudia sat at a table and eagerly rested her chin on her hands. Soren sat next to her, leaning against the wall.

The hired magician stepped onto the stage...and Claudia immediately gasped and grabbed Soren's arm, whispering loudly at him.

"Soren! Soren, _look!"_

Soren leaned forward, squinting at the familiar face. "Hey...that's the punk who was messing with your show's machines!"

"Yeah, Callum! The wind mage! I can't believe we actually found him again!"

"I don't know why you're so obsessed with him, Clauds," Soren sighed. "I mean, look at him. How good could he _actually_ be?"

Meanwhile, Callum tried not to be too stiff in front of all the kids staring at him expectantly. He cleared his throat.

"Hey everyone. I'm Callum. You may know me as Ezran's older brother," he began. Ezran peeked up at the sound of his name and waved up at Callum. Callum discreetly waved back. "So...who's ready to see some magic??"

"Yeah!" The kids cheered. Callum congratulated himself on the positive reaction. Not a bad start. 

Ellis the birthday girl bobbed up and down in her seat. "Are you going to do big fire magic like Claudia??"

Callum tried not to cringe. "Ahaha, no, sorry. I think I'd get in trouble if I started a fire here."

The adults at the party chuckled a little, but the kids seemed disappointed. Whoops. Time to pick the energy back up.

"Besides—," Callum continued. "Fire is for Sun mages, anyway. What do you guys know about Sky magic?"

No answer. Callum pouted.

"Well, don't worry, I'll show you. And for the record—there's a big difference between me and Claudia. She needs to use all these weird machines to do her tricks. But I can do it...with just a wave of my hand."

With a flair, Callum gestured toward the room to create a bunch of mini-tornados on the floor in front of him. Immediately, the kids gasped, and a few delighted "whoa!"s came from the crowd. Success. Callum kneeled down and blew on the tornados, just for show, and sent them flying toward the kids. They were just big enough to entertain them, without causing any real damage. He'd been practicing this sort of thing his whole life, after all. Even the adults looked impressed.

After letting the kids happily mess with his tornadoes a little, Callum let them poof out of existence and pulled their attention back up to him.

"Sky magic is all about the air around us," he informed them. "Once you get in tune with it, then...well, there's actually quite a lot of awesome stuff you can do."

"Look!" Cried one of the kids. "He's flying!!"

Callum feigned surprise as he looked down at his own floating form. "Whoops! Sorry! Sometimes the Sky just becomes a part of you, and then you become part of the Sky!"

Making a bunch of kids float a few inches off the ground was basic stuff for him, but the way these kids were squealing, you'd think this was the most amazing thing they could possibly imagine. Callum smiled as the kids bobbed up and down in the air, some of them trying to swim through it. He'd have to thank Rayla and Ezran for dragging him here. This was actually nice.

Claudia, still watching, was absolutely losing her mind.

"Look! He can just!! Do that! With a wave of his hand!! Soren, we've got to catch him when he's done with his show, I have sooooo much to ask him about!"

Soren simply watched the show, awed.

Once the kids were back on the ground, a few more wind tricks were done before Callum leaned coyly against a table. "You guys know what else is in the sky?" He asked cheekily. "...clouds."

The kids looked above them to see tiny rain clouds forming above their heads. Just like before, the sight of indoor clouds seemed to blow their little minds.

"Weather is part of Sky magic too," Callum explained. "If I try hard enough, I could probably make a huge thunderstorm...but those aren't super fun. How about a little rain instead?"

Small droplets appeared from the clouds and splashed down on the giggling children's faces. Callum grinned and kept going.

"How about...snow?"

Tiny flurries started to appear from the clouds instead, and the kids stuck out their tongues to catch some snowflakes.

Once they'd served their purpose, the clouds looked into a cool mist, giving everyone one last little puff in the face. Callum breathed a sigh of relief, as he partygoers clapped and cheered,

"Alright, let's give it up for Callum!" One of the arcade workers said. Callum bowed and waved as he finally walked off the stage.

"Thank you! Thank you! Call me whenever there's a birthday!" He hopped offstage, happy but beat, as Rayla approached him.

"Not bad," Rayla said with a friendly pat on the back. "You really impressed those kids."

"Yeah, it went well, but I'm beat," Callum stretch's his arms out, spinning them around to get some feeling back into them. Being a conductor for the forces of nature was satisfying, but they took a toll on the muscles.

Rayla held her hands up cautiously. "Alright, well, watch where you wave those arms, windmill, don't want one of your stray gusts to knock me over."

"What?" Callum scoffed. "Scared I'll mess up your hair or something? Like this?"

Rayla yelped as Callum sent a quick puff in her direction...but also in the other one. Callum heard a cry from behind him as his tray wind seemed to startle someone. Whoops. Was that one of the party guests?

Callum quickly turned around to apologize...and immediately froze.

Before him, with the hood hastily blown off her head, was an unnervingly familiar face. How...was this happening??

"Oh crap," Claudia mumbled, as she quickly pulled her hood and shades back on. "My cover got blown. Um, hello!" Claudia waved excitedly at him. "I'm Claudia. You know, the magician. You're Callum, right?"

Callum remained frozen, mouth hanging open. The only coherent thought in his mind right now was just, _huh????_

Claudia seemed unfazed. "Oh my gosh, I've wanted to meet you for _days_ now, you have no idea. You're a real Primal mage, right? I've always wanted to meet someone like you, but I thought you were all extinct! This is amazing! Your show was incredible, by the way! I have so many questions to ask you! Do you have some extra time?"

Callum didn't move. Rayla didn't say anything either.

Claudia started gleefully at him for a few more awkward seconds. Then, suddenly a phone rang.

Claudia frowned. "Wh—What is that?"

Behind Claudia, a guy that Callum hadn't even noticed until now pulled out his phone and hung up. "Uhhh, That was Dad," he told Claudia. "We're gonna have to head back before he gets too pissed."

"What?" Claudia looked genuinely crushed. "No, I-I just...I need a few minutes to talk to Callum. Can't you stall?"

"No way, if he's gonna yell, he's gonna yell at both of us, not just me," Soren protested. "Just exchange phone numbers or something, and let's get out of here."

"Arrrrgh, stupid dad," Claudia whirled back to Callum, who still hadn't said anything, and she quickly pulled out a tiny piece of paper from her pocket. She scribbled her phone number on it and stuffed it into Callum's hand. "That's my personal phone—text me later, okay?? I wanna hear all about your magic!"

Dragging Soren along by the wrist, Claudia waved at Callum as she left. "Bye Callum! Talk to you soon!"

She was gone as quickly as she'd appeared. Callum felt like he'd been hit by one of his own whirlwinds. What. Was. That.

Shakily, as if he wasn't sure it was real, Callum looked at the paper in his hand. Yep. That was a phone number, alright. He turned back to Rayla, who had been mirroring his slack-jawed expression for the past few minutes. She just blinked at him.

"...what just happened?"

—-

That was a few days ago. After the initial shock wore off, Rayla and Ezran had basically jumped down his throat telling him to call Claudia and see what she had to say. Rayla told him it would be a great way to keep the enemy closer like he said he would. Ezran mostly seemed starstruck.

Eventually Callum gave in and dialed the number, half hoping that it was fake and this whole thing would just pass. Rayla and Ezran stood over him while the phone rung on speaker mode.

Somehow, a familiar voice picked up.

_"Hello?"_

Callum was silent. Literally _how_ was this real??

_"...uh, hello?"_

Rayla elbowed him roughly. Callum cleared his throat and squeaked out a reply. "Uh, h-hi...is this Claudia....?"

_"Yes...how did you get my personal number?"_

"Y-you gave it to me, remember? I'm Callum."

This time, she was the one who was silent for a moment. Then she screamed. _"Aaaaah! Finally! I was thinking you'd never call! Oh my gosh, I'm sorry I didn't recognize you, it's hard to tell on the phone."_

Rayla continued raising her eyebrow at him while Callum laughed awkwardly. "Haha...Yeah..." he replied. "I was, uh...surprised to see you, to say the least."

_"Hey, no worries! Oh, I hate to say it, but I'm actually in the middle of a rehearsal—I would love to meet you somewhere though! Then we can talk as much as you want! Do you have a park or something around here?"_

"Well, there's...Wilford park a couple blocks down. I can text you the address."

_"Perfect! I'll get back to you as soon as my rehearsal is done. See you!"_

Claudia hung up the phone. Callum turned to his two friends, bewildered.

Rayla looked mildly amused. "What in the world was that? It almost sounds like you got yourself a _date."_

"I—I don't think so," Callum stammered. "She just wants to...talk about magic, I think."

"You're going to meet the real Claudia!" Ezran piped up excitedly. "Can I come with you??"

"I think this is something Callum needs to do on his own, buddy," Rayla told him. Then she turned back to Callum. "So, I guess your Primal magic isn't as phased out as you thought it was, huh? I mean, the famous girl noticed it."

Callum shrugged, texting the address of the park to Claudia (he still couldn't believe that was a real thing that was happening). He wasn't sure how right Rayla was. Claudia was supposed to be a rival, right? So why would her apparent admiration make him this happy?

—-

That was how Callum found himself standing tensely in the middle of a grassy field, fidgeting with the bottom of his jacket. It was a nice day, and the park was empty aside from a few families playing in the playground a few yards away. Claudia should be here soon.

_The famous girl noticed your magic._ What a weird thought. He didn't think anyone even cared about his work, considering that he was still performing at birthday parties. And yet, apparently a few simple stunts had impressed Claudia— _Claudia,_ of all people—so much that she'd immediately memorized his name and face. Weird. But also kind of nice.

Out of the corner of his eye, Callum spotted a familiar hoodie and jeans walking briskly toward him. His nerves caught up to him again, as Claudia looked up at him from behind her shades with a grin. She had a little bag over her shoulder, and she looked excited.

"Hey! Sorry I'm late." She took her shades off, revealing her bright green eyes.

"I wasn't waiting long," Callum replied. "So, uh...why did you want to meet me here?"

Claudia plopped herself down on a bench and gestured for Callum to do the same. "I want you to tell me all about Primal magic."

Callum sat down gingerly. "I mean...it's no secret. The information is all out there, in...books, and the internet..."

"Yeah, I've read all of that. But I guess..." now it was Claudia's turn to seem nervous. "I'm sorry, you probably think I'm weird with all of this, but I used to hear stories about Primal mages all the time. It's what inspired me to become a magician in the first place. You guys are like...my heroes. So for me, this is like meeting Batman."

She giggled, which was still surreal to see.

Callum coughed. "Batman, huh? Y-you know, this feels a little backwards. I mean, you're the famous one around here, and here you are freaking out over _me..."_

Claudia tilted her head. "I guess so? I haven't really been this excited to talk to someone in a long time." Before Callum could think of a response, Claudia opened up the bag she'd brought, and Callum saw that it was full of little machines.

"Anyway," Claudia continued. "Can you show me how you did that tornado trick?"

Callum blinked. He was supposed to be learning more about _her,_ wasn't he? Then again, this was a super simple trick. He'd have to give a little to get a little. "Sure, I guess."

As Claudia watched, Callum waved his hands in a circle, getting a feel for the air in the park. Soon, a tiny tornado appeared on the grass in front of them, probably causing a lot of panic for the ants down there.

Claudia gasped with delight as the tornado faded. Then she dug into her bag and pulled out two little devices that she strapped to her hands.

"So you just...move the air in a circle? Like this?"

Callum felt his heart sink as he watched her imitate the trick, the little devices beeping as they basically spewed their own air in the motion she desired. A new little tornado appeared, virtually indistinguishable from the first. And she learned to do it so quickly.

Her tornado faded faster, but she still seemed like an excited little kid. "I did it! Oh, but how were you able to make so many of them the other day? And how did you make them move around to where you wanted?"

Callum has crossed his arms and was now clutching the sleeves of his jacket in frustration. "What's with all the questions?" he snapped. "Why exactly are you so interested in learning all my tricks, huh? Are you trying to steal them for your own show?"

Claudia blinked, but then flushed. "No! I'm not stealing, I'm just—trying to learn from you!" To demonstrate, she took off her little hand straps and tossed them back into the bag. She held her hands up innocently. "There! I won't imitate, see?"

Callum wrung his hands together and started to back away. "Sorry, I—a magician shouldn't reveal their secrets, right? I'm gonna have to go."

"But why? I promise you, I'm not trying to steal—."

"Can you please just leave me alone?" Callum snapped. "How am I supposed to believe anything you say? I don't even know you!"

Claudia shrunk back into her hoodie. Callum kept going.

"Isn't it bad enough you're already getting tons of attention for your... _pretend_ magic? Now you're trying to steal techniques from a real magician who's not as famous, so everyone will think _I'm_ the copycat?? No thank you! See you around."

Callum turned around with a huff and started walking away. Why has he been talked into doing this? Just because she was more famous than him doesn't mean she was worth his time.

"Hey, wait!" Claudia called from behind him. Against his better judgement, Callum turned around to see her running up to him. God, she looked pitiful with that sad face. Definitely not the confident persona he'd seen of her onstage.

"Look, I'm sorry," she said hurriedly. "I didn't mean to make you feel like I was stealing. I mean, I always have wanted to make my magic closer to the real thing—but that's because I _admire_ people like you. That's why I wanted to learn from you." Claudia clenched her fists. "But, I guess I didn't think about how you'd feel. So, I'm sorry. Can we please start over? I-I just want to learn..." 

Her sad face was...awfully convincing. Callum stood there for a while, wondering what to do next. If she was being sincere, he didn't want to be a jerk. But if he just showed her step-by-step ways of doing his magic, she could easily just imitate it in her shows without even noticing.

"...fine," he conceded. "If you really want to see what I can do, come back here when it's raining."

He started to walk away again, leaving Claudia confused. "Can't you...make your own storms?" she asked.

"Miniature ones, and it's exhausting," Callum replied. "A Sky mage's power is strongest during a storm. You want to see real power, then meet me here during the next one."

"But I'm only in Katolis for a couple of weeks. What if it doesn't rain??"

Callum just shrugged. If she was determined to see his magic, he'd only show her his most powerful stuff that she couldn't possibly imitate. Maybe then she'd learn to value him a little.

—-

There was a storm a mere two days later. Callum wasn't sure if he was lucky or not. On the one hand, he _thrived_ in a storm. On the other, well, now he had to keep his word to his...unexpected fan.

Nobody else was at the park when Callum got there, naturally. This didn't bother him. With the sky around him alive with wind and rain and its energy crackling inside him--the last thing he cared about was seeing other people. At least this could put him in a fairly good mood.

Callum made his way to the spot where he'd met Claudia last time. To be honest, he half-expected her not to show up. But to his surprise, she'd actually arrived before him, and was now waiting for him with an umbrella and the same excited smile on her face.

Callum exhaled a breath. "Wow. You actually showed up."

"Of course," she replied. "I can't miss a chance like this."

For a moment Callum felt a little flustered at the compliment, but then he remembered why he was here. "If you say so. Then, if you really want to see me do stuff, we should head up to that hill over there." He pointed to a nearby grassy hill. "It's clearer up there. No trees or anything, so I'll have plenty of room to do whatever I want."

Claudia nodded. "Sounds good. Oh, and here--you can share my umbrella."

He didn't need an umbrella, but before he could protest, Claudia had already swooped in and pulled close enough to him that they could share. Well. It would be rude to turn her away now. Especially when she looked so excited.

The two of them walked mostly in silence across the wet field. The mud squished underneath their boots. Callum drew in a refreshing breath, just as Claudia was trying to get her hair under control.

"I've never really thought of storms as sources of power," she piped up. "But it makes sense now that I think about it. The sky's like...alive when this happens, isn't it?"

"Yeah, something like that," Callum said.

They didn't say anything else until they reached the top of the hill. Callum felt a grin cross his face as he looked up at the stormy sky, nothing obstructing his view. Claudia didn't seem to have a bag of objects on her this time, but even if she did, she wouldn't be able to imitate _this_ so easily.

"You might want to stand back a little," he smirked.

Claudia's eyes widened as she stepped back, leaving him to get soaked by the rain again. He didn't mind, though. Closing his eyes, he revelled in the feeling of the wind and rain on his face. The energy inside him ignited even further, spreading through his veins and emanating from him until he almost felt like one with the storm.

Before he could lose himself completely, Callum drew in a large breath, and _blew_ a gust of wind so powerful that it blew a hole in the cloud right above him. Suddenly, in the middle of the rainstorm, a single beam of sunlight shone through, right on Callum.

Claudia yelped, and she quickly joined him in his little sun pocket. "Holy crap! That was insane!! You're crazy powerful!"

Callum smirked, as the hole began to close up. He took Claudia's hand and led her back into the swirling wind. Leaning backward, he closed his eyes again.. Next thing he knew, Claudia was screaming and grasping his hand harder as they were both swept into the air.

The wind carried Callum around like a leaf, and he was just along for the ride. Not letting go of Claudia's hand, he watched as the fear on her face turned to excitement, then joy. She held up her umbrella, letting it catch them wind and fly them in a different direction.

"This is amaaaaaazing!!" she cried.

Callum laughed in spite of himself. "Okay, Mary Poppins! I think we should try to get back on the ground!"

Claudia started to laugh along with him. This wasn't quite the reaction he had expected, but Callum found that he didn't mind the sound.

Minutes later, they were back on the ground, standing underneath a large tree that shielded them from the rain.

Claudia wring the water out of her hair, the huge smile never once leaving her face.

"Wow," she gasped. "Primal magic really is amazing. I don't think I could _ever_ pull that off in any of my shows."

Callum allowed himself to feel a little triumphant, as she turned to him eagerly.

"What's that feel like?" Claudia asks. "To have the power to control the wind like that?"

Callum faced the storm again and shrugged. "It's not _controlling_ the wind, not really," he explained. "It's more like...acting as a conduit. I move myself in certain directions and let nature flow through me, where I want it to go. It's like..." he tried to search for a way to describe it. "It's like I'm the sail on a boat, you know?"

Claudia looked confused.

"You can't control the wind when you're sailing, right?" Callum continued. "All you can do is move the sail to catch the wind in the right way, so the boat will go where you want it to. It's like that. I'm the sail."

He could practically see the gears turning in Claudia's mind as she mulled this over. "So like..." she said. "When the wind was tossing us around like a piece of paper up there...that was the point, right?" She broke into a huge grin. "You were lying all flat like that...because you were channeling your _inner piece of paper."_

Callum blinked, but then he chuckled. "Yeah. Basically."

Claudia leaned back against the tree, still looking awed.

Callum sighed and imitated her. "The drawback of that is that I can't do it all the time. My powers are only at their strongest when there happens to be a storm, so I can only do big tricks like that when nature lets me." He smiled a rueful smile. "Maybe that's why I can't do all these big shows like you. My power isn't predictable enough."

"At least you _can_ do it," Claudia replied. "You're constantly connected to your source and you can do magic just by breathing. I have to strap these... _things_ to my body, and as soon as I take them off, I'm powerless. Plus even with the machines, I can't do stunts like _that,_ predictable or otherwise." She paused, and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "I guess we both have our strengths and weaknesses, huh?"

Callum didn't look at her. "Yeah."

There was a pause as they watched the rain some more. Claudia piped up again. "Was it hard for you to learn to master your power?"

"Oh yeah. When I was a kid, I'd sneeze and blow myself back fifty feet."

Claudia laughed. "Oh my gosh. That reminds me of my first trick. I was trying to make a little fireball and it _literally_ exploded in my face." She paused to let Callum scoff a laugh of his own. But then her face shifted into something melancholy. "You know, I was thinking about what you said the other day. About how I was stealing attention from real magic? I kinda get it."

Callum was surprised, but she continued on.

"You're so lucky to be born with your magic," she said. "And you worked your whole life to learn to control this thing inside you, and you had no choice in the matter but you still turned it into something amazing...and then no one cares. That sounds unfair."

Callum bit his lip and nodded.

"But, you know? I also thought it was unfair for me." She said. "Because, I've always loved magic and wanted to be like those Primal mages I heard about in stories, but...I _couldn't._ All cause I wasn't lucky enough to be born with magic. I work just as hard as anyone else, but if it hadn't been for my dad's machines, I never would have gotten the chance to follow my dream." She bit her lip, getting emotional from the story.

Callum stared at her. "I...never really thought about it like that," he admitted. Now his anger and jealousy toward Claudia seemed...silly, to say the least. "I feel like kind of a spoiled brat now."

Claudia gave him a sad smile. "No, I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I'm just saying that I've always wanted to be like you. I'm glad I was able to have that chance, and that people can watch me." She bit her lip. "But you deserve that chance too, you know? For people to recognize what you can do."

Callum looked down at the floor, kicking the ground. "Y-yeah, I guess. And, um, I'm sorry. I kept thinking of you as some kind of enemy. But you're actually...pretty cool, Claudia. You and your artificial magic tricks...they're pretty cool."

He rubbed the back of his head as he gave her a shy, apologetic smile. She smiled softly back. "Thanks, Callum...you're pretty cool too."

They were quiet again after that, but it was a much more comfortable silence. What Callum had believed was going to be confrontation and competition turned out to be an understanding companionship instead. And honestly, he preferred it that way.

\---

"Claudia. Why are you all wet?"

Claudia froze as her father suddenly appeared, catching her in her attempt to sneak back inside. She quickly tried to think of an excuse--something told her that Viren wouldn't respond well to hearing that she'd snuck out into a rainstorm to meet a boy.

"Ummm...I was taking a walk, and I kinda got caught out by surprise!"

Viren raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying it. But Claudia had already made her excuse, and she tried to laugh it off. "Anyway, uh...time to go take a shower! See you, dad!"

Claudia quickly hurried off, hoping her dad didn't catch the giddy smile on her face.

\---

Today was a practice day. Claudia was used to these. Even when doing multiple shows in the same place, a lot of people would come see it more than once, and they had to make sure they wouldn't be seeing the same thing over and over again. Which meant a lot of new tricks had to be learned and practiced in-between.

But today, Claudia's heart just wasn't in it. After flying in the wind with nothing but an umbrella and the hand of the most amazing guy she'd ever met, strapping all these machines to her body just felt cumbersome. Every time she did a trick, she'd just think, _I bet Callum could do this better._

It wasn't even just his Primal ability. Callum was confident and self-assured, and he didn't have to follow a script that someone else had made for him. He'd given her a chance and allowed her to see what he could do, even listening to her when she talked about her feelings, despite his initial jealousy and distrust of her. He had a strength in him that was far beyond magic.

Claudia's mind was a haze of thoughts as she ran through the motions of rehearsal...until a sudden stop in the music dragged her right out of it. Claudia blinked and looked backstage in confusion, where her dad was walking out to her.

"Claudia, your timing is completely off," Viren told her shortly. "What's going on?"

"Err, nothing," Claudia replied. "I was just tired, and...my mind was wandering around a little, is all. I'll do better."

Viren didn't stop scrutinizing her. "You have been awfully distracted lately."

Claudia bit her lip, avoiding his gaze. But Soren called out from behind the curtain, ruining everything.

"Is it because of that wind mage guy again?"

"Soren!" Claudia hissed.

Viren raised an eyebrow. "A boy, huh?"

"It's not what you think!" Claudia replied hurriedly, hoping she wasn't blushing. "He's a Primal mage, you see! We've just been talking about magic and stuff. Professional things, you know."

Viren seemed surprised. "How many times have you met with him, exactly?"

"Um..." Claudia paused again. She and Callum had met a few times since the day of the storm. But how much of that did her dad need to know? "I guess...three or four times...?"

Soren poked his head out from behind the curtain with a stupid grin on his face. "Wow, Claudia, that's a lot of 'professional' meet-ups. Isn't he kinda young for you?"

"I told you, it's not like that!" Claudia snapped. "And--no he's not! Callum is fifteen! That's only a year younger than me, Soren."

Soren sputtered. _"That_ kid is fifteen? He looks twelve."

"Never mind that," Viren waved his hand, prompting Soren to pull his head back behind the curtain. Viren looked back at Claudia, contemplative. "I had no idea Primal mages even still existed. So what happened? Did you manage to...pick something up from him?"

Claudia shrunk back. For a moment she thought about showing her dad the mini-tornado trick she'd managed to imitate. But...she couldn't do that. Callum had already been worried that she was trying to steal from him--she couldn't betray that trust now.

So she faked a laugh. "Haha! You know something, I don't think I could if I tried! Primal magic...really can't be taught. All I know is he...gets his power from the sky, and woosh woosh, wow! Now there's a hurricane, and we're flying!" Claudia made some vague hand-motions while she spoke, grinning widely at the end.

Viren wasn't amused. "So, he's useless, then."

Claudia frowned. "Dad, he's my friend."

"Right." Viren stood up straighter and reached down to help Claudia do the same. "Well, don't let this 'friend' distract you from putting on a proper performance. We can't allow anything less than perfection, remember?"

"Yes, dad. I'll make sure of that."

Finally satisfied, Viren walked off the stage and let the rehearsal continue. Claudia took a breath and channelled her focus. She'd have to make sure everything truly was perfect in her show, to keep another conversation like that from happening again.

\---

More days passed by, and the secret meetings with Claudia had become more frequent. They even talked about more than just magic now--it was like they were just old friends hanging out. It was actually kind of nice.

Callum was getting ready for another one right now. He stood in front of a mirror in the living room, trying to brush his hair juuuust right, as a little smile appeared on his face. He'd used to dread having to go and see her, but now he found that he was looking forward to it. Turns out, Claudia was a lot more...pleasant to be around than he'd initially thought she'd be.

Satisfied as he could be with his appearance, Callum hummed a tune to himself and turned around...to see Rayla's perplexed face right in front of him.

"Aaah! Wh--what are you doing here?" Callum asked.

Rayla raised an eyebrow. "Um, it's Friday? I'm here so we can plan your next gig?"

"Oh." Right. This was a regular thing for them. "Yeah, I guess I must have forgotten to tell you-- I'm kinda booked today."

Before Rayla could question, Ezran popped his head up from where he was watching TV. "He's going to see Claudia again!"

"What the--again?" Rayla turned back to Callum in confusion. "Are you two friends now or something? I thought you were just spying on her to learn her tricks or whatever."

"Funny you should say that. Er, we do still talk about magic. But now it's kinda, like in a mix of subjects that may or may not come up in conversation and--what?"

Rayla had tuned him out and was sniffing the air. "Are you...wearing cologne?"

Callum flushed. Dammit, he'd known stealing his dad's cologne had been a bad idea. Why was he trying to impress Claudia anyway? Just because she was pretty and fun and understanding and cool didn't mean he had to go out of his way to look good, right?

Regardless, Rayla seemed to have caught on, and she immediately started snickering. "Oh my God. You _like_ her."

"I do not!" Callum protested. "I'll have you know that this is a _professional_ meet-up, and this is _professional_ cologne! Stop laughing!"

Rayla kept laughing. Ezran joined in. And he also started singing.

"Callum and Claudia sitting in a tree! K-I-S-S--"

"Stop that right now or I will throw you into a neverending windstorm!"

Rayla gradually finished her laughing fit and instead started on a sarcastic slow-clap. "Wow, Callum. That is a real twist right there. You start off wanting to spy on her and undermine her, and instead you end up _dating_ her. Very smooth. Teach me your ways."

"We're not--you know what? I don't have to listen to this." He pushed past Rayla and stomped toward the door, ignoring the continual teasing from both her and Ezran. He stopped in front of the doorway and turned around with a pout. "I am off to meet with my completely professional colleague--er, peer--friend--who is _not_ my girlfriend! Got it?? Goodbye!"

Ezran made kissy noises, which sent Rayla into another fit of hysterics. Callum slammed the door on them.

They thought they were so funny, didn't they? Whatever. Callum took a deep breath through his nose and willed himself back into his good mood. Today was a nice day, despite the lack of rainstorms. He was going to just hang out, talk about magic, and enjoy himself. That was all.

Callum arrived at the park and spotted a familiar hoodied girl seated on a bench near their usual spot. She seemed relaxed, sitting up straight with her eyes closed, looking like she was meditating. Callum couldn't help but smile as he got closer.

He paused in front of the bench, but she didn't move. Callum leaned down and waved a hand in front of her face. "Helloooo?"

Claudia opened her eyes and gave him a cute pout. "Hey. You distracted me."

Callum smirked as he sat next to her. "From what?"

"Mmm..." Claudia looked away from him, sheepish. "Not telling." Dropping the subject, she stretched her back with a loud sigh. "Gosh, sorry. This has been my first chance to relax in forever."

"Rough rehearsals again?"

"Don't get me started. I have to keep drilling to make sure I remember all the tricks, you know? Gotta spice it up for every show. Or at least that's what my dad keeps telling me."

"Yeesh." He sat back in the bench. "I can't even _imagine_ having my own dad as a manager. Does he just boss you around 24/7, then?"

Claudia chuckled. "I mean...it gets a little overwhelming, but he knows what he is doing. I have the passion for magic, and he handles...everything else."

"Huh."

"What about you? I know you get to perform around town sometimes. Do you have a manager, or is it just your brother hyping you up?"

Callum laughed. "Well, I mean...I have a friend who kinda acts like a manager. She can be a little serious sometimes, but she's still not my _dad."_

Claudia laughed. It was a nice laugh. "I guess that makes sense."

Callum shrugged. "Anyway, if you want a second to rest, I don't mind just sitting here."

Claudia bit her lip, then scooted closer to Callum with a conspiratory smile. "Um...Actually, I wasn't resting. If I tell you something dumb, will you promise not to laugh?"

Callum felt his face flush. "Uh—S-sure, I promise. What is it?"

Claudia looked sheepish. "I, uh...was trying to see if I could connect to a Primal source."

Callum blinked. A chuckle started to rise in his throat.

"Don't laugh!"

"I-I'm not laughing," he cleared his throat awkwardly. "But, uh...how did you expect that to work, exactly?"

Claudia shrugged and went back to her mediations position. "Oh, you know. This is a nice spot in nature, and you've inspired me lately, so...I don't know, I thought maybe if I just closed my eyes and connected with this place, I might....realize I might have had something in me all along without realizing it."

Callum smiled, not having the heart to tell her how extremely unlikely that was.

"I-it's silly, isn't it?"

Callum shook his head. "It's not silly." He paused, wondering if he should say what was on his mind. "Um...what kind of source were you thinking you'd connect to?"

Claudia put a finger on her chin to think. "Well, I'm trying to keep my options open...but I think I'd be an Ocean gal."

"Mm-hmm."

"Or at least that's what an online personality quiz told me. Apparently I'm flexible and very go-with-the-flow, but when I set my mind to something, I have a one-track mind that's like a raging current. I don't know, what do you think?"

Callum thought of how Claudia had cornered him in an arcade and literally _shoved_ her phone number into his hands when they first met. "Yeah, I'd say that's accurate."

Claudia giggled. A moment of quiet passed. Callum looked at Claudia's relaxed, happy face, and he felt a pang of guilt. To think that he'd spent all this time being jealous of _her,_ when in reality she'd been jealous of _him_ as well.

"I...get it, you know," he said slowly. Claudia looked to him and waited patiently for him to continue. "I get how badly you want to connect to that magic. What I have is so...rare and powerful. It's not fair that only a few people can have this power, and no one else can do it even when they truly want to. But you managed to find a way to make it accessible to everyone. In a limited and more cumbersome way, sure, but you still managed to master it. Because you _care_ about magic. You love it, as an art, even if you need machines to do it. And I..." he gulped. "I spent so long looking _down_ on that, a-and wishing that power was _restricted_ to me and people like me. All cause I was jealous that you were getting attention."

He looked back to Claudia's indecipherable expression, hoping she could see that he was sincere. "And, um...that was pretty elitist of me. So...I'm really sorry that I...thought of your magic as being any lesser than mine." Callum smiled softly. "You're a good magician, Claudia. Artificial or not."

A smile and a blush spread on Claudia's face at the compliment. "Aww, Callum." She turned her body toward him and reached out to squeeze his hand. "It's okay. I'm really glad you're able to see things my way." Her smile turned cheeky. "And, for the record, I'm sorry for acting like a weird fangirl when he first met."

Callum coughed out a laugh. "Well, I mean—you being a weird fangirl wasn't so bad. Without that, we wouldn't have become friends!"

Claudia raises an amused eyebrow. "Really? That's why it wasn't bad? Are you sure that it wasn't cause it fed your ego?"

"Well, we don't have to _say_ it..."

Claudia burst out laughing, and Callum joined her. It was a laugh of humor, of relief, of mere joy at being in the presence of someone they liked.

They calmed down after a few seconds of senseless giggling. For a moment, they just smiled at each other, in a sweet moment of understanding.

Claudia noticed she was still holding Callum's hand. She pulled it away quickly, embarrassed. "Sorry."

"...'s fine."

Claudia paused, and then cleared her throat, moving on with the conversation. "You know, Callum...there might be some way for me to help you."

Callum blinked. "Help me do what?"

"To get more attention. Like you said, no form of magic is lesser than another, and you're an _amazing_ magician. You deserve some time in the spotlight too." Claudia bit her lip, thinking. "What if...I could get you to do an opening act for one of my shows?"

Callum blinked. His jaw dropped. "Uh—a-are you serious?"

"Yeah! I've got another show left in Katolis, I bet if we hurry, we could get you set up—well. We'd have to get past my dad-ager, but I think I can convince him with the extra buzz your tricks would bring. What do you say?"

Callum pinched himself to make sure this wasn't a dream. He gasped at Claudia a moment longer, his heart rate increasing. "A-are you kidding? This is like a dream come true for me! You'd really do this for me, Claudia?"

"Well, yeah. I think you deserve it. And...you're my friend. It would make me happy."

Callum felt his heart soar at her words, and before he knew what he was doing, he surged forward and pulled Claudia into a bone-crushing hug. "Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!! You're the best, Claudia!"

Claudia seemed shocked by the sudden contact for a moment, but she soon hugged him back, her body shaking with giggles. "You're welcome!"

Their hug lasted for a little longer than necessary, probably, but Callum was too happy to dwell on it. Slowly, he pulled away from Claudia. Both of them smiled widely, and neither of them said anything, as Callum stared into Claudi's bright green eyes...

"...wait a minute, did you just say _dad-ager?"_

—-

A short while later, Callum found himself back at the auditorium where this whole thing had started. Claudia was clutching his hand, pulling him behind her as they ran down the aisles up to the stage. He was too busy trying not to fall over to say anything.

The first person they encountered backstage was the buff blond dude that Callum had seen once at the arcade birthday party. Claudia's brother.

"Soren!" Claudia called, pulling them both to a screeching halt. "Have you seen dad?"

Soren paused in his current peeling of an orange. "Hello to you too, sis. Who's that?"

Claudia rolled her eyes. "It's Callum. Callum, this is my brother Soren."

"Oh, right, the wind mage," Soren replied, glancing down at Callum and Claudia's connected hands.

"Hello," Callum replied nervously.

Claudia ignored them. "Where's dad?"

"He's off yelling at the stage workers, what else is new?"

Claudia immediately yanked Callum in the direction of the stage before he had a chance to react. As they got closer, Callum heard the harsh scolding voice of who he assumed to be Claudia's "dad-ager," and as they got closer, he spotted the man sneering at one of the stage workers while they seemed to be cowering in fear.

Comforting.

Claudia stopped running again and gestured for Callum to wait. Claudia's dad took a few more seconds to finish grilling the staff, before sending them running off to fix whatever heinous mistake they made.

Then he turned, making eye contact with Callum with a gaze that made Callum feel like a tiny little bug.

"Dad!" Claudia called out cheerfully.

"Claudia," the man replied. "What's going on? Who's this?"

"This is Callum, the Primal mage I told you about! Callum, this is my dad and manager, Viren."

Viren's expression changed slightly, as he looked Callum over curiously. "This...child is the Primal magician...?"

"Yeah, he's amazing! I saw him perform at a show the other day, and everyone was completely blown away--well, literally and figuratively..."

Claudia kept talking him up, meanwhile Callum felt like his very soul was being scrutinized by this guy. _This_ was Claudia's dad? Why was he so _scary??_

Claudia was still talking as Callum tuned in to the rest of her speech. "...and, um...I was actually hoping that we could let him perform an opening act for our last show here."

Viren finally responded to her, his voice even though his expression never changed. "Is that so? Not that I'm not impressed, but we've only got so much time per performance, and we wouldn't want to use it on someone that the audience didn't come here to see."

Yeesh.

"Come on dad, opening acts are a normal thing for every other type of performer," Claudia argued. "We magicians gotta stick by each other." She smiled, hooking her arm into Callum's as she spoke. "I mean, wouldn't it be great for me to use my influence to help a fellow magician? Think of the good PR that would get. Plus, teaming up with a Primal mage cooould boost our ticket sales for the final show."

Callum glanced at Claudia's cordial smile. She was talking about him like he was just a marketing gimmick, but she did mention that it was the one thing her dad would listen to. The look in her eyes, though, made it clear that she cared. That alone soothed Callum's worries.

Viren was quiet for a second, but then he suddenly broke into a smile. It was an unnervingly charming smile. "Well then," he chuckled. "How can I say no to helping a fellow magician in need?" He stepped forward and clapped a friendly hand on Callum's shoulder. "Welcome to the show, Callum."

"Um. Thank you, sir."

"Call me Viren. Now, the show's only in a couple of days, so we're going to have to work quickly to get you set up." He was already turning away and pulling out his phone to get working. "I know your magic is incredibly powerful, so you'll have to walk me through exactly what you need to make sure--."

"A-actually I don't need any set-up."

Viren stopped and turned to face him. "What do you mean?"

"I, um. I can do everything with just my hands," Callum explained. "I don't really need anything to be set up. And I can control my powers enough to make sure nothing gets...you know, destroyed."

Viren stared at him for a long time, and Callum thought he saw the scowl return for a split second. But then the man smiled again. "Well, of course. That makes it easier on all of us, doesn't it?" He leaned a little closer to Callum, still smiling. "But you'll still have to come to a rehearsal, of course."

"Y-yes. Thank you, sir. Um. Viren."

And then he was gone.

Minutes later, Callum walked outside of the stadium, still in disbelief. Claudia walked quietly beside him to see him off.

"That...was a lot easier than I expected it to be," Callum mused.

Claudia looked thoughtful. "Me too, actually...my dad is usually pretty stubborn about things, unless..." she suddenly stopped and gasped. "Oh my gosh. Callum--there's something I need to tell you."

"What is it?"

"My dad--um. I think he's trying to keep you close, so he can learn how to imitate your tricks."

"What??" Callum took a step back, his heart pounding in his ears. "Claudia you said--!"

"It's not me!" she interrupted. "I wouldn't do that to you, I swear! But _he_ might."

She bit her lip, clearly berated herself. Callum was suddenly conflicted about all this.

"I'm so sorry, Callum," she pleaded. "You have to believe that I didn't mean to do this. I just want to help you, I swear." She wrung her hands together and kept muttering. "I'm so stupid, I should have remembered this before. I-if you want to back out of this now, I understand."

Callum frowned. Claudia's dad had been watching him like a hawk. It definitely was a risk, but...was it really enough to give up the biggest chance he'd ever had? Claudia easily could have hidden that information from him, but she didn't.

"No, I don't think I'm going to back out," Callum declared. Claudia looked a little surprised, but he stood up straight and smiled at her. "Thanks for being honest with me. I guess no I'll just have to bring out the big guns."

Claudia tilted her head, also smiling. "Can you do it without a giant storm?"

"I may not be at my _full_ full power, but this isn't exactly a little kid's birthday party either. I'll go so hard your dad won't even begin to figure out how I did it."

Claudia grinned wider. "And I can help distract him while you go out there and blow everyone away."

"Hey now...that's my joke."

Claudia giggled. It was a nice sound. Callum couldn't believe he'd ever disliked this girl. All of that seemed so far away now.

She met his eyes with mirrored determination, and both of them nodded happily. "Let's do this."

\---

Callum's heart was pounding. He'd done shows before, but never anything this _big._

Rehearsal had gone okay. Viren had been distracted by some other random things that the stage workers were doing, probably Claudia's doing. Right now, though, he was standing mere feet away from him behind the curtain, his face neutral. Claudia was going to come through for Callum, though. He had faith in her.

What he was worried about now was all these _people._ Rehearsal in front of an empty auditorium was one thing, but now he could hear all these voices...there were hundreds of them out there, and he only had one chance to impress them all...or completely humiliate himself.

Callum pushed the curtain aside just a smidgen so he could peek out at the audience (probably a mistake). He zeroed in on the front row, where he spotted his family. Ezran was bouncing in his seat from the excitement, so much that Callum thought he would fall off. His parents sat next to Ezran, talking excitedly as his dad fiddled with the video camera (dear Lord, his dad brought the _video camera)._ On Ezran's other side was Rayla, leaning back in her seat and trying not to look too affected by all this.

Seeing them there was a little bit of comfort. At least those four people in particular weren't going to judge him.

Callum felt someone tap him on the shoulder and whirled around. Claudia stood before him, a sympathetic smile on her face that eased Callum's anxiety a little more.

"Stage fright?" Claudia asked.

Callum laughed. "That obvious, huh?"

"Don't worry, it happens to everyone. My advice? Just focus on the magic. Once you get into the zone and start doing what you love, it won't even matter that people are watching." Her eyes sparkled in a way that sent a jolt through Callum's heart. "And even if you do mess up, everyone will be so amazed by your magic they won't even care."

"I hope you're right..."

"I know I am." Claudia smirked. "Because you're amazing, Callum." She reached out and tapped Callum's nose as she spoke, and now his stomach contained a different type of butterflies.

"Thanks, Claudia. For everything." He smiled softly. Claudia giggled and smiled back. The noise around them seemed to fade away for just a moment.

"Ahem." Viren cleared his throat suddenly, making them both jump. He didn't seem to react to what he'd just witnessed. "I think we should get the show started, don't you?"

Claudia laughed nervously. "Yes, of course. I'll go out there and introduce you, Callum."

Claudia straightened herself up as she stepped outside. Callum saw the lights go dim and heard the crowd's noise quiet down. The power that Claudia had. Callum took a few deep breaths, and focused on the stirring power with him.

From behind, he noticed Viren starting to walk away. As Callum looked up, the man gave him a smile. "Break a leg, Callum."

Callum frowned. Viren was already leaving, probably off to whatever vantage spot he had before Claudia could distract him.

Then, he called out. "You don't have to watch me, you know." Viren paused. "You've already got your own magic."

Viren looked at him indecipherably, then left without a word.

Callum shook his head, and re-focused on the situation. Claudia had given him a microphone to attach to his clothes, and he took a minute to make sure it was on. Looking up, he heard the last few words of Claudia's speech.

"...I'd like for you all to sit back, and enjoy a different kind of magic first. Everyone please welcome one of the truest magicians you'll ever see--my friend, Callum!"

The audience clapped politely, save for the obnoxious cheering coming from the front. Callum felt a smile cross his face as he stepped out onto the stage..

He tried to look as confident as possible as the spotlight dimmed on him. Claudia gave him a wink as she disappeared behind the curtain again. This was it. His big break.

The stadium was silent. Everyone was waiting for him to do something. For a second, Callum froze. But Claudia's words quickly came back to him. _Just focus on the magic._

Callum closed his eyes and focused inward, on his heart beat, on his own power. Willing himself to be still and tune out the audience's existence, Callum inhaled a deep breath...and _blew._

—-

It was a nice day today. Overcast, that is. The wind was fairly wild, and only a few people were at the park.

Callum was at the usual bench, in a hoodie and shades so no one would recognize him. He's learned quickly how exhausting that could get. Not that he wasn't grateful, and absolutely ecstatic, but still.

As he continued to bask in the windy weather, another familiar hooded figure plopped down next to him.

"Hey, look at you," Claudia greeted cheekily. "Did you already get so famous that you have to hide your face in public?"

"Yep," Callum placed a hand over his heart and feigned a sigh. "It is both a blessing and a curse."

Claudia giggled. Satisfied, Callum dropped the act.

"In all seriousness, though. I'm not a celebrity or anything. But I have been getting a lot more attention and requests since the show."

"That's good, right?"

"Of course. It just doesn't feel real quite yet." He paused, fidgeting, and rubbed the back of his head. "I, um. I owe you a big one, Claudia. It's thanks to you that my career is starting to take off. I can stand on my own now, and I never could have done it without you, so...thank you for everything."

Claudia smiled back and took his hands in her own. "Aww. You don't owe me anything. I mean, I was going to thank _you_ for humoring me and letting me see Primal magic up close. I learned a lot from you, you know."

Callum fought down the giddy feeling he got from Claudia's touch. "We both learned a lot from each other, really."

They paused. Claudia's smile slowly disappeared, and she looked downward sadly. She kept holding Callum's hands, stroking her thumb across them thoughtfully. Callum held his breath and waited for her to speak.

"Um..." she began hesitantly. "Speaking of standing on your own...I'm leaving tomorrow."

Callum grimaced. Yeah, he knew that already, but the reminder still hurt,. "Yeah, I-I know. Gotta keep visiting places, doing more shows...I get it. That's your life." Even as he explained it to himself, he could feel himself getting choked up.

Claudia nodded. "Yeah, exactly. But I'm...really gonna miss this place. And, I'm gonna miss you. I'll miss coming out to this park and meeting up with you to talk about magic and whatever else..."

Callum took a deep breath. "So will I. But...I'm still glad it happened, you know? I'm happy that we were able to talk a lot, and become friends, and..." he trailed off for a moment. "And, um. You'll always have my phone number, right?"

Claudia smiled and nodded. "Yeah. We can talk to each other all the time—I mean, when we're not busy with _both_ of our famous demanding jobs."

Callum managed a grin of his own. "Don't worry, I don't mind waiting a couple of hours for a text back." _As long as it's from you._ God, the way he'd gotten attached to Claudia in such a short time was...almost scary. But in the good way. If only their time together didn't have to be cut so short. 

Claudia nodded slowly. She was already lost in thought again. But then she sat up straighter with a determined look on her face. "Okay. Well, let's not waste too much time here. I've only got an hour before I have to go back and get everything ready. I don't want to drag it out, cause my dad's been in a bad mood."

"I feel like 'bad mood' is his default setting. No offense."

"None taken. You're right. But that said, we should do something. Unless you want to just sit here the whole time."

"...I don't mind just sitting here with you." The words left Callum's mouth before he could stop himself. He suddenly realized what he'd said and froze. Oh no. What was she going to say to him now??

Claudia's jaw dropped, her eyes grew wide and her cheeks red. For a second she seemed at a loss for words. "Huh? I-I mean...really?"

Callum's face burned, but somehow, the look on Claudia's face encouraged him to keep going. If this was going to happen at all, it would have to be now. "Um. Yeah. I really like just being with you. E-even if we're just sitting around. I like your—company. And your personality. I like _you."_ He gulped, feeling his heart hammering in his ears. "So, uh. We don't have to do anything special. I think we should just enjoy each other's company for as much as we can."

Claudia was still frozen. She didn't respond. She looked like a gaping fish.

...Callum started panicking. "Or not!" He quickly pulled his hands out of Claudia's grasp, and gave an overly loud laugh. "We could totally just fly in the air again if you'd do that instead. Uh, forget I said any of tha—!"

And out of nowhere, Claudia suddenly grabbed Callum's shirt collar and yanked him towards her. Their lips all but crashed into each other, the impact making Callum's head spin before he could even register what was going on. But as soon as he could...oh, _wow._

Claudia broke the kiss as quickly as she'd initiated it. Callum was a little dazed, and she looked embarrassed. "S-sorry, I just...did that without thinking..."

"It's okay," Callum replied, breathless with a goofy grin on his face. "Can we do that again? But this time, uh, softer?"

Claudia grinned as she grasped his hands again. She leaned back in, and Callum met her halfway.

Now _this_ was a special way to spend their last hour together.

—-

_Thurs, Nov 28, 9:15 am_

_Claudia: heyyy, you! I saw you trending on Tweeter last night! Congrats baby, everyone loves you. <3_

_4:30 pm_

_Callum: Aww, Thanks Clauds. I'm not even sure what I did, tbh, but I'm glad it's the good kind of trending lol. (Btw sorry for the late reply, it's been hectic today.)_

_Fri, Nov 29, 10:43 am_

_Claudia: (Lol no worries I'm doing it too.) How have you been?? I miss you sm._

_9:24 pm_

_Callum: Miss you too. Everything's been mostly the same with me, aside from all the extra shows I've been doing._

_Callum: Ezran says hi btw._

_Sat, Nov 30, 12:22 pm_

_Claudia: Hi Ezran! ^^ I'm on a break from shows for now, but I talked to Dad and I think my next stop will be somewhere close to Katolis. I'm really excited!_

_Callum: Where is it?_

_Claudia: Xadia, I'm pretty sure. It's like right next to Katolis, right?_

_Callum: Oh yeah! That's where Rayla's from. It's a couple hours' drive from here._

_Callum: Maybe I could...somehow convince her to get me a gig there at the same time..._

_Claudia: !!!! PLEASE TRY!!!_

_Claudia: Now I've got my hopes up ;; But I really want to see you again._

_Callum: I really want to see you too. I'll do my best to get that scheduled. You won't have to wait much longer, okay? <3_

_Claudia: Eeee! I can't wait!! <333_

_Claudia: ...and how I have to go. Shows may be on hold but rehearsals will never end. I'll text you the details of the Xadia thing later._

_Callum: I'll be waiting with bated breath._

_Claudia: Hehe. Talk to you soon?_

_Callum: SEE you soon, more like. Good luck with rehearsal._

_Claudia: you too! Bye baby~_

_Callum: Bye for now, darling._

**Fin**

**Author's Note:**

> Honestly the weirdest part of writing this fic was taking Viren, evil sorcerer and master manipulator, and just turning him into Kind Of A Jerk.


End file.
